This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Some vehicular communication systems include one or more radio control units and one or more remote antenna units that are linked by a cable. The radio control unit sends radio frequency (RF) communication signals through the cable to the remote antenna unit, where the RF communications signals can be amplified before they are applied to an antenna. Similarly, received RF communication signals can be amplified by the remote antenna unit before transmission from the remote antenna unit to the radio control unit. In some applications, it is desirable that the amplification be controlled by the remote antenna unit to, e.g., compensate for signal losses in the cable that connects the remote antenna unit and the radio control unit, etc.
Changes in the configuration of the remote antenna unit are not dealt with efficiently in the prior art. As an example, if it becomes necessary for the remote antenna unit to support a new frequency band, the remote antenna unit may be unmounted from the vehicle and replaced by a new remote antenna unit. As another option, changes may be made to the unmounted remote antenna unit, which must then be re-mounted to the vehicle. Overall, these are rather complex exercises.